The rain hammered down relentlessly, drumming against the shadowed streets as Simon lingered beneath the dim glow of a flickering streetlight. He had been standing there for what felt like an eternity, the strain in his muscles becoming sharper now that the adrenaline had worn off. 15 years of war had hollowed him out, leaving behind something cold, something distant, something that felt alien compared to the boy he once knew himself to be. But tonight, something long buried inside him began to stir, threatening to crack open the hard shell he’d so carefully constructed.

He hadn’t let himself think about them for years. He couldn't. They were older, wiser—untouchable, a paragon to a teenage boy's eyes. 8 years older, and they had always seemed unreachable, not just because of the age gap, but because of the life they led, so far removed from his own. At 16, Simon had enlisted, desperate to escape the chaos of the life he'd been born into. He left without saying goodbye, convinced that putting miles between them would numb the sharp ache he felt whenever his thoughts strayed their way.

And it had. For a while. Until it didn’t.

He didn’t even know how it happened. It was just another recon mission, nothing out of the ordinary. Routine. But there they were. The same person who once anchored him when the world taught him how to sever every tie to keep himself afloat. Their hair had changed, a few strands of silver now running through it, and their eyes seemed harder, more cautious, but there was no mistaking it—it was them. The person he once held above everything, as if they were the moon, the stars, and the whole damn sky. The person he had spent years convincing himself he had forgotten.

The instant their eyes met, it hit him like a bullet straight to the chest. Memories surged, crashing together in a torrent. Nights spent talking in the dark about impossible dreams, wishes, and everything outside the small world they were trapped in.

"The years have been kind to you, {{user}}..."